PARLIAMENT.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 75, 15 August 1912, Page 5

PARLIAMENT.

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14, 1012. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. By Telegraph—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. The House met at 2.30. RACING PERMITS. Many petitions from various branches of the Sports Protection League, asking for a reasonable increase in the number of race days, were presented. UNIVERSAL HALF-HOLIDAY. The Universal Half-holiday Bill (Mr. Laiiren.-fon) was read a first time. ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS.

Ministers, in answers to questions, said that if any proprietary racing club now receives a license to use the totalisator it would not have precedence in any future redistribution of permits of publicowned and controlled clubs. The Government has not handed over, nor has it any intention of handing over, the allotment of racing permits to any conference.

The matter of the Government establishing cold stores for fruit in districts where settlers are prepared to give sufficient guarantee will receive consideration.

The Department of Agriculture has now in preparation plans and specifications of fruit-canning factories, and will shortly be in a position to supply these documents free of charge to persons proposing to establish the industry. The question of granting monetary assistance will receive consideration. The Government is opposed to a system of entail being established in the country. There is no foundation for Ihe rumor that the Queensland cattle tick exists in New Zealand. The Government has decided to grant free passes up to 100 miles for competitors at rifle meetings. The question of the oath of allegiance will very likely be dealt with in the Defence Amendment Bill. The question of light railways is under consideration. A Cabinet enquiry is being made into the working of maternity homes, and on receipt of reports it will be decided what steps are to be taken in order to supply full information as to the general management of the homes, and particularly with respect to the allegations made against the management of the home at Auckland.

. The House then discussed Ministerial answers to questions until the dinner adjournment. THE FINANCIAL DEBATE. The TTouse resumed at 7.30. The debate on the Budget was resumed by Mr. Ell, who said that there was a great deal in the statement which gave him satisfaction, and a good.deal that surprised him. It was so unlike what they had been used to hearing from the other side of the House. A comparison of the land taxation of the Ward Government and that of the Massey Government showed to the advantage of the Ward •Government. The progressive land tax instituted by Sir Joseph Ward had had a marked effect in creaking up large estates. The Liberal administration had justified its existence, and had only been defeated on a campaign of misrepresentation and slander. Nothing was in the Budget to indicate that the Government would prosecute a . workers' dwellings scheme in country districts. It was left largely to the local authorities to act. A good deal had been done by the late Government in the way of local Government reform. Extended powers had been given to the people and a broad franchise decided upon. No party in any Parliament in the world had done as much in the way of labor legislation for the masses' of the people as their party. They were told now that the Government were not going to sell the national endowments, though when in opposition they said they would. That was evidence that the Government was a backdown Government. Dealing with the Arbitration Act lie said: "God help the people of this country if the compulsory clauses of the Act were taken away." The attitude of the present Government towards the Advances Department was further evidence of their back-down policy. Regarding taxation, he said that the Liberal Party had left the Customs tariff without an article of food being taxed, except those such as biscuits, which were taxed to protect local industry. Mr. Statham said that Mr. Ell had gone back some twenty years, and if some people had changed their opinions during that time it only showed that they were moving along with the times. Dealing with* the public debt extinction scheme, he said that the weakness was that any impecunious Government might come along and take the whole lot. All such money should be out of the reach of any future Government. -Such a departure would greatly improve the credit of New Zealand. The Government would pay two-thirds of the cost of country telephones, instead of half as in the past. The iron and pthor industries were languishing, which was bad for the workers and lor young men who want to go in for engineering. When they had got through their terms of apprenticeship they had to leave the Dominion. He was pleased to see that the Minister of Customs had decided to deal with shoddy goods, and he applauded the humanitarian legislation proposed in the Budget. He referred to the objection to the compulsory military scheme, and reminded the House that education was also compulsory, but they heard no objections to that. The present Government would effect what was desired in the way of the closer settlement of the land. Ho was convinced of this, and also of the fact that their predecessors in office had not done what they should have in this direction. He defended the large run-holders of old. They had ■broken-in the country when there was no population in the country. They utilised the land to the fullest extent, and improved the breed of sheep and cattle, and were responsible in a great measure for the present excellent state of New Zealand's export meat trade. Referring to the labor unrest, he said that Mr. Fowlds had left the late Government because they were departing from their principles. The Labor Party was organising, and was totally distinct from the present Opposition. New Zealand had been through a period of prosperity, but what share had been received by the workers? Why should not the working man participate in the high -standard ol living? lie was sure that every man on the Government side of the House had the interests of the working man at heart. The Hon. D. Buddo said that he would trv to prove to the Government that they lmd turned a somersault during a very recent period, lie dwelt upon the restitution of racing permits to the Rangitikei Club, and pointed out that it was a peculiar tiling that members adjacent to Rangitikei were all supporters of the Government, and members representing Cliristchureh, which bad suffered by the lor* of one dav, were supporters of the Opposition. This savored very much of political patronage. So did the fact that the Education Commission's report appeared in three Opposition papers only before the report came before the House. Tie dealt with Mr. Fisher's allegations in connection with Mr. McAlister's holding of all the Government work in Invercargill appertaining to tile Government In- | suranee Department. He pointed out

that in Wellington a certain legal firm liad, during the regime of the late Government, had a practical monpoly ot legal emoluments. He held that there was nothing new in the proposal for an elective Upper House. Sir G. Grey had proposed a similar scheme, but the Imperial authorities would not agree to it. The proposals in connection with the sinking funds of the Advances to Settlers Department were not sound finance He was pleased to know that the graduated land tax had been the means of placing more settlers on the land than would have been the ease had the system not been introduced. He trusted that the Government would keep on making provision for the baekblocks settlers to get access to the nearest harbor or railway for the disposal of their produce. The Government would find themselves very busy if they tried to keep up with the land settlement of the late Government. They would required' to settle from fifteen hundred to eighteen hundred people a year.

The debate was adjourned, and the House rose at 10.45.